Make seafood the star of the show
People often ask me how I keep coming up with new dishes. The answer isn’t straightforward, but to keep at the top of my game and to satisfy my creativity my cooking has to continuously evolve. Some of my favourite times in my kitchens are when I get together with the guys to discuss and try out ideas for new dishes. Sometimes a supplier brings in something that triggers my imagination. I think to myself, ‘That would be nice with…’, or I draw on my classical training or experiences I’ve had eating elsewhere; then again a new dish may emerge from a happy accident.
So, how do I decide what I’m going to cook? Local seafood is, of course, my main source of inspiration. For me, creating a dish always starts with the fish or shellfish. That definitely has to be ‘the star of the show’. Then I look to the other produce that is available to me and in season, using only the best quality – that way I can be sure of great results. Unlike meat and poultry, seafood is highly seasonal, so it is variable and it isn’t always available when you’d like it to be. I’ve learnt to deal with this by taking a flexible approach to my cooking, mixing and matching where necessary.
Nathan Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen, with photography by David Loftus, is published by Quadrille, priced £20.
Plaice poached in butter with leeks, and parsley and mustard mash
Serves 4
Ingredients
Method
Heat your oven to 220C/gas mark 7. For the mash, put the potatoes on an oven tray and bake for 1 hour or until tender.
Put the butter, bay leaves, garlic and thyme in a pan and warm over a low heat until the butter has melted. Add the leeks and cook until the butter starts to turn golden, then remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Once cooled, strain off most of the butter into a roasting tin large enough to hold the plaice. Transfer the leeks to a tray, ready to warm through to serve. Reserve the rest of the butter.
When the potatoes are cooked, set aside until cool enough to handle. Lower the oven setting to 180C/gas mark 4.
For the mash, bring the milk to a simmer in a pan and remove from the heat. Cut the potatoes in half, scoop out the flesh and mash. Fold in the milk and then add enough of the reserved poaching butter to give a soft mash. Add the parsley and mustard and season to taste.
To cook the fish, bring the butter in the roasting tin to a simmer. Carefully add the fish and cook in the oven for about 12 minutes. Meanwhile, warm the mash and leeks.
To check the fish is done, carefully lift a piece out of the butter and insert a small knife at the thickest point, hold it there for 5 seconds and then place it against the back of your wrist; it should feel warm, not cold or hot.
Scoop the mash onto warm plates and add the leeks. Lift the plaice onto the plates, spoon over some of the butter and season with a little salt. Serve at once, with lemon wedges.
Seafood burger with charred baby gem and wasabi mayonnaise
Serves 4
Ingredients
Method
Pick over the crab meat, checking for bits of shell or cartilage and place in a large bowl. Roughly chop the prawns and cod.
Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and add a little olive oil. When hot, add the shallots, garlic and chilli and cook for 2 minutes without colouring. Tip on to a plate to cool.
Put the cod into a blender and pulse for 20-30 seconds; it should have some texture rather than be smooth. Add the fish to the crab meat; stir to combine. Add the prawns, the cooled shallot mixture and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions and mould them into patties. Place on a tray and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Light the barbecue. While it heats up, make the mayonnaise. Put the egg yolks and lemon juice into a bowl and whisk to combine. Continuing to whisk, add the oil, drop by drop to begin with, then in a steady stream until it is all incorporated and the mayonnaise is thick. Add the grated wasabi, stirring it through thoroughly. Season with salt to taste and add the wasabi leaf, if using.
When ready to cook, thread the baby gem lettuces on to a large skewer. Place patties on the barbecue for 3 minutes, then turn and cook for a further 3 minutes. As you turn them, add the skewer and char the lettuce on both sides. At the same time, toast the burger buns on the barbecue grid.
To assemble, place a couple of baby gem leaves on the bottom half of each burger bun with some pickled onions, then top with the patties. Add a generous dollop of wasabi mayonnaise. Sandwich together with the bun tops and serve.
Smoked mackerel, goat’s cheese and beetroot tart
Serves 4
Ingredients
For the pastry:
Method
To make the pastry, put the flour, butter, salt and thyme into a food processor and process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg, milk and pulse briefly until the dough comes together. Shape pastry into a disc, wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for 1 hour.
Heat your oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin and use to line four 10cm loose-based flan tins, 2cm deep. Line the pastry cases with a disc of greaseproof paper and add a layer of baking beans. Chill for 10 minutes.
Bake the pastry cases for 15 minutes, then lift out the paper and baking beans. Brush the pastry with egg wash; turn oven down to 160C/gas mark 3.
For the filling, lightly beat the eggs, cream, horseradish and beetroot juice together and season with salt and pepper. Scatter the smoked mackerel, goat’s cheese and dill evenly into the pastry cases, then pour over the egg mixture. Bake for 20 minutes, until the custard is set and the pastry is golden.
For the salad, mix the beetroot, sherry vinegar and the olive oil together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. When the tarts are ready, leave them to stand for 5 minutes or so, to cool slightly. Add the watercress to the beetroot and toss to mix. Place a tart on each plate; arrange salad alongside. Serve with lemon wedges.
So, how do I decide what I’m going to cook? Local seafood is, of course, my main source of inspiration. For me, creating a dish always starts with the fish or shellfish. That definitely has to be ‘the star of the show’. Then I look to the other produce that is available to me and in season, using only the best quality – that way I can be sure of great results. Unlike meat and poultry, seafood is highly seasonal, so it is variable and it isn’t always available when you’d like it to be. I’ve learnt to deal with this by taking a flexible approach to my cooking, mixing and matching where necessary.
Nathan Outlaw’s Fish Kitchen, with photography by David Loftus, is published by Quadrille, priced £20.
Plaice poached in butter with leeks, and parsley and mustard mash
Serves 4 Ingredients
- 2 plaice, about 1kg each, fins trimmed, head removed and split down the centre bone
- 500g salted butter
- 2 bay leaves
- 3 garlic cloves, peeled and crushed
- 1 large thyme sprig
- 8 small leeks, outer leaves removed and cut across in half, or 12 baby leeks, trimmed
- Cornish sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 3 large baking potatoes
- 150ml whole milk
- 4 tbsp chopped flat-leaf parsley
- 1-2 tbsp English mustard, to taste
- lemon wedges
Method
Heat your oven to 220C/gas mark 7. For the mash, put the potatoes on an oven tray and bake for 1 hour or until tender.
Put the butter, bay leaves, garlic and thyme in a pan and warm over a low heat until the butter has melted. Add the leeks and cook until the butter starts to turn golden, then remove from the heat and leave to cool.
Once cooled, strain off most of the butter into a roasting tin large enough to hold the plaice. Transfer the leeks to a tray, ready to warm through to serve. Reserve the rest of the butter.
When the potatoes are cooked, set aside until cool enough to handle. Lower the oven setting to 180C/gas mark 4.
For the mash, bring the milk to a simmer in a pan and remove from the heat. Cut the potatoes in half, scoop out the flesh and mash. Fold in the milk and then add enough of the reserved poaching butter to give a soft mash. Add the parsley and mustard and season to taste.
To cook the fish, bring the butter in the roasting tin to a simmer. Carefully add the fish and cook in the oven for about 12 minutes. Meanwhile, warm the mash and leeks.
To check the fish is done, carefully lift a piece out of the butter and insert a small knife at the thickest point, hold it there for 5 seconds and then place it against the back of your wrist; it should feel warm, not cold or hot.
Scoop the mash onto warm plates and add the leeks. Lift the plaice onto the plates, spoon over some of the butter and season with a little salt. Serve at once, with lemon wedges.
Seafood burger with charred baby gem and wasabi mayonnaise
Serves 4 Ingredients
- 100g fresh crab meat (mixed white and brown)
- 100g shelled prawns, deveined
- 200g cod fillet, skinned and pin-boned
- a little olive oil for cooking
- 2 shallots, peeled and finely chopped
- 2 garlic cloves, peeled and finely chopped
- 1 green chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
- Cornish sea salt and freshly ground black peppe
For the wasabi mayonnaise:
- 2 egg yolks
- 2 tbsp lemon juice
- 300ml sunflower oil
- 50g freshly grated English wasabi or paste
- 3 tsp chopped wasabi leaf, if available
- 2 baby gem lettuces, trimmed
- 4 burger buns, split
- pickled onions
Method
Pick over the crab meat, checking for bits of shell or cartilage and place in a large bowl. Roughly chop the prawns and cod.
Heat a frying pan over a medium heat and add a little olive oil. When hot, add the shallots, garlic and chilli and cook for 2 minutes without colouring. Tip on to a plate to cool.
Put the cod into a blender and pulse for 20-30 seconds; it should have some texture rather than be smooth. Add the fish to the crab meat; stir to combine. Add the prawns, the cooled shallot mixture and mix well. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide the mixture into 4 equal portions and mould them into patties. Place on a tray and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.
Light the barbecue. While it heats up, make the mayonnaise. Put the egg yolks and lemon juice into a bowl and whisk to combine. Continuing to whisk, add the oil, drop by drop to begin with, then in a steady stream until it is all incorporated and the mayonnaise is thick. Add the grated wasabi, stirring it through thoroughly. Season with salt to taste and add the wasabi leaf, if using.
When ready to cook, thread the baby gem lettuces on to a large skewer. Place patties on the barbecue for 3 minutes, then turn and cook for a further 3 minutes. As you turn them, add the skewer and char the lettuce on both sides. At the same time, toast the burger buns on the barbecue grid.
To assemble, place a couple of baby gem leaves on the bottom half of each burger bun with some pickled onions, then top with the patties. Add a generous dollop of wasabi mayonnaise. Sandwich together with the bun tops and serve.
Smoked mackerel, goat’s cheese and beetroot tart
Serves 4Ingredients
For the pastry:
- 250g plain flour, plus extra to dust
- 150g unsalted butter, diced
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 2 tsp thyme leaves, chopped
- 1 egg, beaten
- 1 tbsp cold milk
- egg wash (1 egg yolk beaten with 2 tsp milk)
- 3 eggs
- 150ml double cream
- 1 tbsp creamed horseradish
- 150ml beetroot juice
- 150g smoked mackerel, flaked
- 50g firm goat’s cheese, crumbled
- 1½ tbsp chopped dill
- Cornish sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 300g raw beetroot, peeled and finely shredded
- 2 tbsp sherry vinegar
- 75ml extra virgin olive oil
- 2 handfuls of watercress
- lemon wedges
Method
To make the pastry, put the flour, butter, salt and thyme into a food processor and process until the mixture resembles fine breadcrumbs. Add the egg, milk and pulse briefly until the dough comes together. Shape pastry into a disc, wrap in cling film and rest in the fridge for 1 hour.
Heat your oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Roll out the pastry on a lightly floured surface to the thickness of a £1 coin and use to line four 10cm loose-based flan tins, 2cm deep. Line the pastry cases with a disc of greaseproof paper and add a layer of baking beans. Chill for 10 minutes.
Bake the pastry cases for 15 minutes, then lift out the paper and baking beans. Brush the pastry with egg wash; turn oven down to 160C/gas mark 3.
For the filling, lightly beat the eggs, cream, horseradish and beetroot juice together and season with salt and pepper. Scatter the smoked mackerel, goat’s cheese and dill evenly into the pastry cases, then pour over the egg mixture. Bake for 20 minutes, until the custard is set and the pastry is golden.
For the salad, mix the beetroot, sherry vinegar and the olive oil together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper. When the tarts are ready, leave them to stand for 5 minutes or so, to cool slightly. Add the watercress to the beetroot and toss to mix. Place a tart on each plate; arrange salad alongside. Serve with lemon wedges.